Container



May 8, 1951 w. w. MAHER 2,551,615

CONTAINER Filed Jan. 29, 1946 x/// IN V EN TOR.

Patented May 8, 1951 oogNfrArNnn William W. llfiatinier,v San Francisco, Qalif., assigner to American Can ,(Joilirlpany,V N eryvvliorl, N. Y.,

ion of New Jersey Application January 29, 1946, Serial No. 644,066 weers- 61. meer) The present invention relates to sheet metal containers or cans and has particular reference to a hermetic crimped end seam Afor a closure member applied to a hem edged can body Vwall surrounding a mouth of the can to vprovdea can which is hermetically tight but which may be eadily opened by'a prying ofi of the closure member.

vIn the manufacture of sheet metalrcans of the type having closure members held in kplace on the cans by crimped edge portions of the closure members, crimping rollers or cooperating die elements are ordinarily used for performing the crimping operation. 1n `such an operation flange portions Vof the closure member are usually bent inwardly toward the c anbody wall and laround a curled edge, hem or other projectionon ythe can body to hold the closure member in place.

Wherelcrimped closure members are secured to .drawn or seamless cans o r evencans having butt welded side seams which yare Aof uniform thickness, there is no trouble encountered yin providing a hermetic jointbetweenV the closure member and the can body because the sidewall .of the body and hence anycrimping projection extending therefrom is one continuous thickness of metal extendingaroundthe "entirel periphery of the can body. This continuous periphery provides an ideal seat for a crimped-on closure member.

However, where it is necessary to have a ylap seam section in the seat for the crimped-on clo- ,sure member, asvbrought about by the employthe .can body. In crimping the closure member in place, the crimping rollers or die elements Aen- .counter the double thickness of metal at the lap `section of the seam and thus there is the inherent difficulty oisecuring true metal to metal contact of all parts ofthe seam. This diculty is remedied by the useI ofl lining compound in the joint.

Where it is desirablethat the terminal edge of the can body be curled or hemmed to provide a seat for the closure member, the adverse nature of the step condition is considerably increased inasmuch as four thicknesses oi metal and a double step prevails in theseal. The` use of compound in such a region of the seam does not asa rule cure this increased difficulty.

" the invention isequaily well ladapted to" c y ,other shapes. Thev side seamedgesofftheebody vare secured' together in the usual, lolcl'f'aridblap `side seam which inc ludesfa loclsectio The instant invention contemplates overcoming these difficulties by providing'afsnortor narrow hem adjacent ,the xrri'ciiitLh''of a-car1\'havin'g 'a lap section side seam, to form a holding seat 'fora closure memben'rso the flange' portion of the closure member can be Icrimped. 'directly against the side wall of the" canbod'mandthus vonly asilgle Step is present in`the'1a'p seamfsec- `tion o i the body.

An object of the invention is the provision of a sheet metal can having Valap "sectin'side e'am 4having @crimped-enclosure member in a short or narrow Ahem provided'adja the Vterminal edge o the canbodyas ahol 151g medium for the vclosure member so that' the liange portion of ythe closing member fmayfbe crimped in tightly/below the'he'rnr'ne'd Edge" and against the side wallnof the canbody wlfiere a single thicknessrof the offset or stepped lapseam is engaged 'thereby ,providing a` hermetic rjoint rbetvgjeen the closure member and the"can.`

Another objeot'is theprovis'ion of sucha can `wljierein the closure member maybe readilypri'ed off its hemmed seat'ftoyre'move'th'e closuremem- ,ber from the can.

Numerous other objects and advantages ofthe invention will be apparentv 'as it isbetten'y linderstood from the following description'wliich",taken inconnection'witli `the accompanying zdw. s,

,discloses rapreferred embodiment thereof ll Referring to the drawings Figure 1 is a perspective View of a, sheet metal can embodying the instant invention,"with parts brolfzenaway; v 'l l Fig-n2 is anenlarged sectional viewtaken sub- .gradually @10mg `a iene inaicatdiby dientes 2- 7-2;infig.l l, 4with kparts'broken ,away` "A Fig. 3 is a view s'milarfto FigjZ, the View being taken along the sides'eam'of the cani ligji is a view similarv to Fig. 2 showing how .theolosurernemberis pried iij'and" `Figs.` 5 ,and 6 are Iragmentary "sectional yiews respectivelytakn substantially along 'the A`lines 5-5, t-inrigja As a preferred embodiment of the instant invention the drawings illustrater a Vshe'et`1rietal can madero-f un plate or thegiik' enel and comprising@ tliblllln body H' U l2 secured thereto iny a suitable 'seamf' The'f'body preferably iscylindrical in cross section although lof 'and 3 is necked-in to a smaller diameter forming a rounded shoulder 2l (see also Fig. 2) and an inwardly curved neck portion 22. The neck portion 22 merges into a straight upright Wall section or portion 23 which surrounds and denes a mouth 25 for the can. The terminal edge portion of the body wall section 23 is bent outwardly in a hollow rounded edge or flange 25 which merges into a short or narrow hem portion 26 folded back against the outside surface of the can body, as best shown in Figs. 2 and 4.

The annular or peripheral edge 25 provides a smooth edge seat for a pry-o cover or end member 28 while the hem serves as an edge projection for holding the cover in place on the can. In the usual metallic can where the thickness of the metal ranges between .008 and .025 of an inch it has been found that such a hem having an overall length of between .040 and .050 of an inch is best suited for providing a hermetic joint between the cover 28 and the can body I I.

The cover 28 has a sunken panel bottom wall section 3l (Fig. 2) surrounded by spaced and connected inner and outer wall members or anges 32, 33 respectively. When the cover is on the can the inner flange 32 fits into the mouth of the can in frictional engagement with the inner surface of the upright wall section 23 of the can. The inner flange 32 of the cover projects upwardly over the hollow edge 25 of the can and merges into the outer flange 33 which extends downwardly over the hem 26 on the outside of the can. The flanges thus define a channel which encloses the body wall section 23, the hollow edge 25 and the hem 26.

Immediately below the hem 26 the outer flange 33 of the cover is crimped inwardly against and tightly engages the outer surface of the upright wall section 23 of the can along a peripheral line of contact. This intermediate portion of the flange is thereby formed into an inwardly projecting bead 35. The bead 35 of the outer cover ange 33 merges into a depending inwardly curled smooth edge constituting an edge curl 36 for reenforcing the cover flange and for use in prying olf the cover when opening the can. A compound lining material 3'1 is interposed between the cover flange 33 and the seat, hem and body wall section of the can to hermetically seal the cover in place on the can.

With such a construction of can and cover, the outer ange 33 of the cover at the bead 35 locks under the hem 2S and tightly holds the cover in place while it is on the can. The bead 35 engages tightly against the can body and crosses the side seam at its lap section I1 where there is only a single thickness step in the seam (Fig. 3). At this lap portion of the seam the space adjacent the step is small enough to be entirely lled in by the compound 31 (see also Fig. 6) and hence the joint between the cover and the body can be readily made hermetic.

The crimping of the cover 28 in place on the can by the forming of the bead 35 in the cover flange after the cover is applied to the can, is greatly facilitated by the location of the bead at a place where it engages the can body. Thus only a single thickness step at the side seam is encountered. With this location of the bead 35, the cover flange may be crimped-in tighter against the can body at the lamp section of the side seam with less wear and tear on the seaming rollers usually employed for this purpose.

To pry the cover loose from the can it is merely necessary to use a blunt nosed tool 40 (Fig. 4)

inserted under the edge curl 36 and engaged against the shoulder 2l of the can body as a fulcrum. A slight pressure on the outer end of the tool will readily bend the outer flange 33 of the cover outwardly, as shown in Fig. 4. The cover may thereupon be readily lifted from the can and may thereafter be replaced and used repeatedly as a reclosure for the can.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantages will be understood from the foregoing description, and it will be apparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention or sacrificing all of its material advantages, the form hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim:

1. A sheet metal container having a body side seam and a hermetically sealed crimped end seam joint, comprising a can body having a straight end wall portion surrounding the mouth of the container, said wall portion including the side seam and terminating in an outwardly and reversely bent flange constituting a cover seat, said seat being lapped at the side seam in an off-set step, a pry-on closure member for sealing the mouth of the container, said closure member having a countersunk wall surrounded by spaced connected inner and outer flanges defining a channel therebetween for receiving and conning said cover seat, a sealing compound in said closure channel for providing a hermetic seal when said closure member is in sealing position on said seat, an intermediate peripheral portion of the outer flange of said closure member extending inwardly and engaged directly against said straight body wall end portion beneath said reversely bent body flange along a continuous peripheral line of contact, said sealing compound being confined within said end seam joint and completely filling the lapped offset step in the adjacent portion of said body side seam, the outer flange of said closure member terminating in an inwardly curled edge spaced beneath said peripheral line of contact of the closure member with the container body to provide a reenforced pry-off edge for removing the closure member from said body, the container body wall further including an inwardly curved neck portion and an adjacent rounded shoulder spaced beneath said closure member pry-off edge to constitute a fulcrum for a tool engageable with said pry-off edge to remove the closure member from the container body.

2. A sheet metal container having a body side seam and a hermetically sealed crimped end seam joint, comprising a can body having a straight end wall portion surrounding the mouth of the container, said wall portion including the side seam and terminating in an outwardly and reversely bent flange constituting a cover seat, said wall portion and said flange being lapped at the side seam in an oiset step, a cover member for sealing the mouth of the container, said cover member having a depressed panel wall sur-- rounded by spaced connected straight inner and outer anges defining a channel therebetween for receiving and confining said cover seat, an intermediate peripheral portion of the outer flange of said cover member extending inwardly in a curved peripheral bead against said straight body end wall portion beneath said reversely bent body flange along a continuous circumferential 5 line of contact disposed above said depressed cover member wall, and a sealing compound in said cover channel between said body end wall portion and said inwardly extending intermediate peripheral portion of the outer flange of said cover member, said sealing compound engaging the terminal edge and the outer face of the reversely bent ange constituting said cover seat and completely filling the lapped offset step in the side seam in said body end wall portion and said reversely bent flange for hermetically sealing the crimped joint between said can body and said cover member.

WILLIAM W. MAHER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

Number Re. 17,397 r 649,979 0 949,210 1,542,662 1,552,134 1,672,561 1,700,611 10 1,777,933 2,043,733 2,104,540 2,362,846 2,426,371 15 2,423,392

Number 6 UNITED STATES PATENTS Name Date Gray Aug. 6, 1929 Danz May 22, 1900 Bjelland Feb. 15, 1910 Brenzinger June 16, 1925 Frey Sept.v 1, 1925 Sutcliffe et al. June 5, 1928 Freeman Jan. 29, 1929 Prahl Oct.`7, 1930 Darling June 9, 1936 Hoffman Jan. 4, 1938 OBrien Nov. 14, 1944 Kinberg Oct. '7, 1947 Socke Oct. 7, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date Australia 1932 

